| Discovery[1] | |
|---|---|
| Discovered by | C. W. Hergenrother |
| Discovery site | Catalina Stn. |
| Discovery date | 2 August 1994 |
| Designations | |
| (7959) Alysecherri | |
Named after | Alyse Cherri Smith (wife of discoverer)[2] |
| 1994 PK | |
| main-belt · Hungaria[3] | |
| Orbital characteristics[1] | |
| Epoch 4 September 2017 (JD 2458000.5) | |
| Uncertainty parameter 0 | |
| Observation arc | 65.30 yr (23,850 days) |
| Aphelion | 2.1094AU |
| Perihelion | 1.7760 AU |
| 1.9427 AU | |
| Eccentricity | 0.0858 |
| 2.71yr (989 days) | |
| 169.49° | |
| 0° 21m 50.4s / day | |
| Inclination | 19.263° |
| 235.79° | |
| 100.40° | |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Dimensions | 3.05 km(calculated)[3] |
| 3.161±0.005h[4] | |
| 0.30(assumed)[3] | |
| E[3] | |
| 14.5[1][3] · 15.09±0.63[5] | |
7959 Alysecherri, provisional designation1994 PK, is a bright, stony Hungariaasteroid from the inner regions of theasteroid belt, approximately 3 kilometers in diameter. It was discovered on 2 August 1994, by American astronomerCarl Hergenrother at Steward Observatory'sCatalina Station on Mt Bigelow near Tucson, Arizona.[6] The asteroid was named for the discoverer's wife, Alyse Cherri.[2]
TheE-type asteroid is a member of theHungaria family, which form the innermost dense concentration of asteroids in the Solar System. It orbits the Sun in theinner main-belt at a distance of 1.8–2.1 AU once every 2 years and 9 months (989 days). Its orbit has aneccentricity of 0.09 and aninclination of 19° with respect to theecliptic.[1] The firstprecovery was taken atPalomar Observatory in 1951, extending the asteroid'sobservation arc by 43 years prior to its discovery.[6]
A rotationallightcurve for this asteroid was obtained from photometric observations made by American astronomer Brian Warner at the U.S. Palmer Divide Observatory, Colorado, in July 2013. It gave arotation period of3.161±0.005 hours with a brightness amplitude of 0.13 inmagnitude (U=2).[4] TheCollaborative Asteroid Lightcurve Link assumes an albedo of 0.30 and calculates a diameter of 3.05 kilometers with anabsolute magnitude of 14.5.[3]
Thisminor planet is named after the maiden name of the discovering astronomer's wife, Alyse Cherri Smith.[2] The official naming citation was published by theMinor Planet Center on 13 November 2008 (M.P.C. 64311).[7]
